As you’ve likely heard by now, both the Vancouver Canucks and Thatcher Demko would like to get an extension done. Both parties said as much publicly before everyone went their separate ways for the summer.

After Demko said he “wants to be here” when asked about the possibility of extending with the Canucks, president Jim Rutherford made it clear that the club would be more than open to talking extension with their star goaltender.

“There’s risk on both sides if there’s an extension,” Rutherford said at his end-of-season media availability. “The thing I really feel comfortable with is, leading up to him returning to play, he had a different approach to his training, which was more a preventive training for injuries… I like what he’s found here and what he’s done. He’s 100 percent healthy now and in a great frame of mind. We would like to extend him. It’s going to be a matter of how much risk is the team willing to take and how much risk is he willing to take as to the term of that contract.”

So what’s the sweet spot for an extension between the Canucks and Thatcher Demko? Let’s dive in.

First, let’s focus on the “risk on both sides” that Rutherford spoke about in the quote we referenced previously. This is something we’ve written about previously, so we’ll keep it short.

In the event of an extension, Demko takes on the risk of passing up the chance to hit the open market and earning less than what he would if he returns to form and posts another Vezina-worthy season while proving his health concerns are a thing of the past. For the Canucks, the risk is more obvious. They risk signing a potentially injury prone goaltender who continues to be unreliable in 2025-26, takes up space on their salary cap

Now if an extension isn’t reached this offseason? The “risk” — if you can call it that — for the Canucks is that Demko turns in a Vezina calibre season, cementing himself in the upper echelon of NHL goaltenders, who if you haven’t heard by now, are getting paid quite handsomely.

But it’s important to note that there is indeed risk for Demko if he doesn’t sign an extension, either. If it’s another injury-riddled campaign and Demko hits the free agent market after a season where he once again missed time due to injury, all of a sudden he’s looking at a short term contract more in the “show me you can stay healthy for a season” range.

Here are some NHL goaltender contracts, broken down by tiers.

Superstars:

Igor Shesterkin — $11.5 million
Sergei Bobrovsky — $10 million
Andrei Vasilevskiy — $9.5 million

We should also mention that while Connor Hellebuyck’s $8.5 million cap hit is an incredible home town discount for the Winnipeg Jets, it doesn’t aid to illustrate what superstar NHL goaltenders are paid in today’s NHL.

Where we can gain more understanding of comparables for Demko is a tier below, where we’ve seen multiple elite-level starters earn a cap hit of exactly $8.25 million. Plus, most of these contracts were signed just recently as well.

Elite-level starters:

Jeremy Swayman — $8.25 million
Jake Oettinger — $8.25 million
Ilya Sorokin — $8.25 million
Linus Ullmark — $8.25 million
Juuse Saros — $7.74 million

Solid starting goaltenders:

Adin Hill — $6.25 million
Logan Thompson — $5.85 million
Mackenzie Blackwood — $5.25 million
Joey Daccord — $5 million.

Where does Demko slot into this list of goaltenders? At his best, likely somewhere between an elite-level starter and a superstar goaltender. That would mean that if he returns to form and puts the injuries behind him, Demko is almost certainly looking at something in the $9-10 million range on the open market. But this summer, coming off a season where he played in just 23 games, the number Demko and the Canucks can agree on is likely much lower. Not Joey Daccord-Mackenzie Blackwood low — but still likely lower than what goaltenders in that second tier like Oettinger and Swayman are earning.

Demko’s camp would likely be looking for the Ullmark deal — 4 years at $8.25 million — whereas the Canucks would likely prefer a cap hit closer to that of Adin Hill ($6.25 million) or Logan Thompson ($5.85 million). So let’s say the two sides meet in the middle, as is so often the case in negotiations.

The cap hit likely starts with a six or a seven, and it would be hard to imagine the term being much more than three or four. This gives Demko guaranteed money, and also allows him to hit the open market again at age 32 or 33. If he’s back to being a Vezina candidate year in and year out during his next contract with the Canucks, not going long term puts him in a great position to still cash in on that status as one of the game’s elite goaltenders before it’s too late.

What do you think an extension between the Canucks and Thatcher Demko should look like? Let us know in the comments section below!